Henry County AlArchives Biographies.....Crawford, James W. 1844 - living in 1893
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Ann Anderson alabammygrammy@aol.com May 26, 2004, 9:44 pm

Author: Brant & Fuller (1893)
   JAMES W. CRAWFORD, treasurer of Henry county, was born in Barbour county in
1844. He was the eldest in a family of twelve children born to Nicholas W. and
Lindsey W. (Hays) Crawford, and is a brother of A. C. Crawford, present mayor of
Dothen, whose memoir appears elsewhere in this work. James W. Crawford grew to
manhood on his father's farm. At the age of eighteen years in 1862 he enlisted
in the Confederate service as a private in company H, Fifteenth Alabama
infantry, commanded by Col. William C. Oates. He was assigned to the eastern
army, and participated in numerous skirmishes, and fought at the battle of
Gettysburg, being taken prisoner July 30, 1863. He was at first taken to
Fortress Monroe and shortly after to Fort Delaware, where he spent the remainder
of the war, not being released until June 15, 1865. During his prison days he
managed to collect some money, which upon his liberation served a good purpose.
He in company with a number of others had to work his way home as best he could.
After experiencing many hardships and a long circuitous route he reached
Eufaula, July 2, 1865. Here he bought a good suit of clothes and made his way
home. He was now in his twenty-first year and decided to attend school, which he
did for three months. He then engaged to manage his fathers farm and did so for
seven years. At the end of this time he began farming for himself and thus
continued, till January, 1891, when he moved to Abbeville and bought a choice
lot, on which he erected a large and commodious residence, and is now engaged in
educating his children. In 1876 Mr. Crawford was elected county commissioner,
serving seven years. In 1888 he was elected county treasurer, which office he
has filled up to the present time, to the general satisfaction of the public. He
also filled the office of township superintendent for a number of years. He owns
and manages a farm of 1,000 acres, upon which he has the best improvements,
including a number of tenant houses. In 1880 he embarked in the mercantile
business at Lawrenceville, with a large stock of general merchandise, continuing
thus engaged two years. He then moved his stock of goods to his store building
on his plantation, and has continued it there up to the present time. He has on
his farm a steam saw-mill, grist-mill and cotton gin, which are valuable
adjuncts to his farming operations. Beside all this he has invested in property
at Dothen. In 1890 he bought out a fine business and erected for its
accommodation a fine brick block. He also owns a number of residence lots. Mr.
Crawford was married December 7, 1869, to Miss Anna Hays, daughter of Calvin and
Mahala C. (Whitehurst) Hays; who was born in Henry county, and is the mother of
eleven children, nine of whom survive: Everett C., single and living at home Lou
E., Lindsey J., Albert N., Curtiss W., James W.; John L., Coda A., and Jessie O.
The mother of these children died February 1, 1892, at the age of forty-three
years. Mr. Crawford, by careful management and by following correct business
principles, has made his way to wealth, and, is a representative business man of
the community, in which he has risen to the top.




Additional Comments:
from "Memorial Record of Alabama", Vol. I, p. 1080-1081
Published by
Brant & Fuller (1893)
Madison, WI

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